Calling all cat owners across the UK! We’re looking for people to take part in CatWatch Day on Bank Holiday Monday on the 6th May. CatWatch Day is part of the Neighbourhood Cat Campaign in association with SureFlap and Your Cat magazine.

On CatWatch Day, we want cat owners to observe their cats for a two-hour period, and make a note of the activities (or inactivity!) they get up to. Even if your cat is asleep for the entire two-hour period, or out and about in the neighbourhood, we still want to hear about!

To take part, check out our CatWatch Day Information Sheet. To help, print this document out for making notes. If you have more than one cat, choose which cat you will be observing at random. If possible, choose the time slot at random also. There are four time slots to choose from – 7am-9am, 12pm-2pm, 7pm-9pm or 10pm to midnight.

Once you have observed your cat on CatWatch Day, complete our online CatWatch Day Questionnaire. This must be completed by 10th May in order for it to be included in our results survey.

So put the date in your diary – Bank Holiday Monday May 6 – and get all your cat owning friends involved too!

A festival celebrating cat videos is returning to the US in August, after 10,000 people attended the event last year. Taking place in Minnesota, cat fans have the chance to vote for their favourite cat videos on the internet, to be displayed on a big screen. The event last year was the first festival of its kind to celebrate internet cat videos.

Cat videos have grown popular on the internet through video sharing websites such as YouTube. A video of a mother cat hugging her kitten has been viewed over 50 million times in the last two years.

The winning video of last year’s festival starred feline philosopher, Henri.

For more information about this year’s Cat Video Festival and to vote for your favourite video, visit the Walker website for more information.

Do you have a favourite cat video? What video would you vote for?

Are you a neighbourhood of cat-owning and non-cat-owning residents? Are you looking for ways to live in harmony with all the cats in your neighbourhood? Is your neighbourhood in Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire or Lincolnshire?

At SureFlap, we’ve teamed up with leading animal behaviour specialist Jon Bowen, Cambridge Cat Clinic and Your Cat magazine to help a neighbourhood of cat-owning and non-cat-owning residents tackle their turf wars.

If you and your neighbours would like to take part in our campaign, you and the cats in your neighbourhood will benefit from expert advice on how to create a feline friendly environment. Learn how to adjust your cat’s environment to improve their behaviour and make them feel happier. Those without cats will learn how to keep the neighbour’s cat out of their garden in a humane way.

To take part in the SureFlap Neighbour Cat Campaign, your neighbourhood should have cats with regular access to the outdoors. Ideally, you should live in Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire or Lincolnshire.

To apply, complete the submission form on our website here. If you can, include the number of cat-owning households in your street and whether there are any on-going issues related to the local feline population. If you are chosen to take part in our campaign, we will be in touch!

The Supreme Cat Show (often referred to as the Crufts of the cat world) is taking place on Saturday 24 November 2012 at the NEC in Birmingham. There will be around 1,000 at the show, all competing to claim the coveted prize of Supreme Exhibit 2012. At the Supreme Cat Show 2011, the prize was claimed by a very handsome Cornish Rex, a distinctive breed recognised by its curly coat.

A competition entitled ‘Diamonds are Forever’ will judge the best decorated pens; a theme no doubt inspired by the latest James Bond film, Skyfall. Keep an eye out for some dazzling cat enclosures!

Pedigrees and non-pedigrees alike will be judged on the day, offering visitors the chance to see an array of different types of cats. You’ll get the chance to see many of these beautiful cats up close, as well as have the opportunity to browse the shopping stalls for treats for your own cat!

The Supreme Cat Show is a full day event from 9am-5:30pm. Further information and tickets can be purchased through the official Supreme Cat Show website.

National Feral Cat Day was introduced by Alley Cat Allies to highlight the growing problem of feral cats and how they are managed. Alley Cat Allies promotes the welfare of feral cats by encouraging humane care and educating the public.

Alley Cat Allies was founded in 1990 to help put a stop to feral and stray cats being needlessly put to sleep. To help reduce the growing number of feral cats in the United States, they launched a Trap-Neuter-Return initiative to minimise breeding in feral colonies.

Image courtesy of 'F is for Film' on Flickr

For the last decade, National Feral Cat Day has been supported by organisations around the world. This year, a host of events are taking place, largely in the USA, including free spay or neuter sessions for outdoor cats, building cat shelters, and even a special Halloween party! For a full list of events, visit the National Feral Cat Day events page.

Alley Cat Allies relies on donations and fundraising to perform their work. You can join the Cat-alyst Society and make regular donations or donate through your workplace. You can even donate your old car to help raise money for Alley Cat Allies!

Are you hosting an event for National Feral Cat Day? Do you support feral cats in some way? Why not tell us about it by commenting on this blog post!

Yesterday the winners of the Cats Protection National Cat Awards were selected in a plush awards ceremony held in London. Five winning cats rose to fame in the following categories: Best Friends, Hero Cat, Most Incredible Story, Outstanding Rescue Cat and Celebrity Cat.

A cat with an extraordinary story to tell headed up the Best Friends category, and also claimed the prize of overall winner of the National Cat Awards. Jessi-Cat was handed the accolade for her extraordinary relationship with her owner Lorcan.

Lorcan suffers from Selective Mutism, which makes it hard for him to talk and express himself. Jessi-Cat has helped Lorcan deal with his illness. Lorcan is able to show Jessi-Cat love, and even express it in words, which he struggles to do with humans. Jessi-Cat has transformed Lorcan’s life in a remarkable way, which is why he was selected as the overall winner.

A black and white cat called Charley was the winner in the Hero Cat category for saving her owner’s life. Owner Susan suffered a diabetic attack in the middle of the night and Charley rushed to the rescue to wake her husband to help her. A hero cat if ever there was one!

The Most Incredible Story went to a cat called William who, against all the odds, managed to drag himself home after a vicious dog attack. William’s back legs were in such a bad state that one of them had to be amputated. The incident happened earlier this year, and he has since made a full recovery and is coping well with life on three legs.

A little cat called Phoenix won the Outstanding Rescue Cat award for her resilience to her bad start in life. She was found in a bad way having been very badly burnt. She was taken into a veterinary practice and cared for over a three month period. She was then adopted by the practice manager and has made a full recovery.

The winner of the final award, Celebrity Cat, was chosen by the public, and the prize went to Simon’s Cat! We love Simon’s Cat and think his cartoons are really fun, bringing smiles to cat lovers everywhere – a worthy winner!

For more information about the winners of the National Cat Awards, take a look at the information on the Cats Protection website.

Is your cat worthy of an award?

Why not tell us what award you think your cat could win by commenting on this blog post!

Videos of cats have taken over the internet and many have become You Tube phenomena. In fact cat videos are often amongst the most watched videos on You Tube.

The Internet Cat Video Film Festival has been set up to celebrate our love of feline furries on film! The festival will be held in Minneapolis on 30 August 2012, and cat lovers are being invited to nominate their favourite cat video by 30 July.

Many cat videos on You Tube have received millions, even tens of millions of hits. Some of the most watched cat videos include ‘Charlie Schmidt’s Keyboard Cat’ with 25m views, ‘Stalking Cat’ with 34.5m views, ‘Cat Mom Hugs Baby Kitten’ with nearly 47m views and ‘Surprised Kitty’ with nearly 64m views!

What’s your favourite cat video of all time?

We’re exhibiting our award-winning SureFlap Microchip Cat Flap at the BSAVA Congress until Sunday. We attended the event last year, and this year we expect the BSAVA Congress to be even busier! This year, the congress takes the name of BSAVA World Congress and is set to be the biggest international veterinary event that’s ever been held in the UK. The BSAVA Congress 2012 is taking place in the ICC/NIA in Birmingham.

We are showcasing the SureFlap Microchip Cat Flap on stand 423 and we’d like to welcome all delegates to drop by for a chat. If you are interested in becoming a SureFlap veterinary stockist, we’d be happy to answer any questions you may have. If you visit our stand, you also have the chance of winning a pet portrait worth £450!

Over the last year, we have continued to build our base of veterinary stockists. Events such as the BSAVA Congress allow us to introduce the SureFlap to vets and veterinary nurses that may not have heard of us before.

The SureFlap Microchip Cat Flap is an ideal product to stock in a veterinary practice, as it uses microchip technology to keep unwanted cats out of the home, reducing stress in resident cats. The SureFlap can be introduced to your customers that report problems with intruder cats or those that bring their cats into the practice to be microchipped.

To help you promote the SureFlap Microchip Cat Flap in your practice, we supply a free demonstration unit with your first order. This demo unit consists of a SureFlap mounted in a wooden frame on a glass stand and a microchipped toy cat so that you can demonstrate the product to your customers.

For more information about becoming a SureFlap veterinary stockist, visit the Veterinary Members Area of our website or contact us for more information.

Every cat owner thinks their pet is special, but does your cat have what it takes to win a National Cat Awards? Previously called the Rescue Cat Awards, the National Cat Awards have been run by Cats Protection every two years since 2004 to celebrate the cats in our lives.

The event used to only be open to stray and rescue cats, but for 2012, the organisers at Cats Protection are inviting all living cats in the UK to enter the National Cat Awards.

There are three categories in the National Cat Awards: ‘Hero Cat’ – for cats that save the day, ‘Best Friends’ – cats that have improved the quality of their owner’s life, ‘Most Incredible Story’ – true cat stories that are beyond belief, and ‘Outstanding Rescue Cat’ – star cats that have been adopted from animal welfare organisations.

If you would like to enter your cat into one of the above categories, you have until Thursday 31^st May to submit your entry. Just fill out the National Cat Awards Entry Form before the closing date.

There is also a new, fifth category, in this year’s National Cat Awards – ‘Celebrity Cat’, which recognises cats in the public eye. This category looks set to be more of a bit of fun, and votes are being accepted on the Cats Protection Facebook Page. Who would you vote for? What about Larry the Downing Street cat? Or perhaps your favourite celebrity has a cat they like to shout about? Just head to their Facebook page and cast your vote on their wall.

The National Cat Awards will culminate in a glitzy awards ceremony in London this August, which will include celebrity judges presenting the awards.

Cats Protection is the leading feline welfare charity in the UK. They have over 250 branches and 29 adoption centres across the UK, and they have around 230,000 cats through their doors every year. To find out more about this fantastic cat charity, visit the Cats Protection website for more details.

Will you be entering your cat into the Cats Protection National Cat Awards?

What category will you be entering your cat into and why? We’d love to hear about your star cat! Why not tell us about them by commenting on this blog post.

Today is Black Friday in the USA, when many companies slash their prices on products and gifts across the States. There are a number of animal shelters and pet adoption centres in the US that are using Black Friday as a way to encourage animal lovers to adopt.

Kings Animal Services – ‘Black Fur Friday’ – Hanford Mall CA

On 25-27 November, Kings Animal Services are putting a twist on Black Friday by hosting their very own ‘Black Fur Friday’. Head down to their pet adoption center in Hanford Hall, California today, tomorrow or Sunday to take advantage of their half price adoption fees on all cats and dogs that have any amount of black fur! Cats can be adopted for just $37, which includes vaccinations, spaying/neutering and microchips.

The idea of Black Fur Friday is to raise awareness about black cats and dogs that often get overlooked when people decide to adopt animals. Black animals are gorgeous and they should be celebrated!

Don’t worry if you can’t adopt this Black Friday. Kings Animal Services are encouraging animal lovers to head down to the adoption center anyway to donate and show the animals some love.

Cat Town – Black Friday Event – Pet Food Express Oakland California

Head over to Pet Food Express in Oakland California from 12pm-5pm today to take part in Cat Town’s Black Friday event. Cat Town focuses on the fostering and rehoming of sensitive cats that might sometimes find it difficult to find new homes because they are timid or feral. Cat Town works in partnership with Oakland Animal Services to reduce the number of cats that are euthanized in the area.

Cat Town does not currently have physical premises, but they hope to open a cat sanctuary in the future. All cats in Cat Town’s foster program are cared for in a home environment.

Lucky Paws – Black Friday Extravaganza – Coronado Mall Albuquerque

Take advantage of 50% off all pet adoptions at the Lucky Paws center this Black Friday in Coronado Mall, Albuqeurque. Lucky paws will be open for adoptions today from 11:30am to 7:30pm.

Are you hosting a Black Friday Pet Adoption event?

If you work or volunteer at an animal shelter or adoption center that is hosting a special Black Friday pet adoption event, why not tell us and our readers about it by commenting on our blog post!